


Neighbors

by IWUnurse2013



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Canon Divergence - Post-Avengers (2012), F/M, these two are just adorable
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-05-29
Updated: 2015-03-23
Packaged: 2018-01-27 01:29:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 12,632
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1710017
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IWUnurse2013/pseuds/IWUnurse2013
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>So here's my first try at writing Darcy/Steve. Because they're flippin adorable. This is also posted on ff.net under the same author/title. Comments are awesome, so feel free to leave some! This is not beta'd, so all mistakes are mine. Taking some creative liberties here, so this isn't really canon, but still has potential to be awesome. Thanks for reading, enjoy!</p>
    </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So here's my first try at writing Darcy/Steve. Because they're flippin adorable. This is also posted on ff.net under the same author/title. Comments are awesome, so feel free to leave some! This is not beta'd, so all mistakes are mine. Taking some creative liberties here, so this isn't really canon, but still has potential to be awesome. Thanks for reading, enjoy!

It had been 6 months since the Battle of New York, and Steve was settling in to civilian life as best he could. He didn’t want to live in Stark Tower, though Tony had offered everyone their own apartment in the building, mostly to keep everyone together in the event they needed to assemble again. Steve had a room in the Tower, where he would sleep sometimes after returning from long, exhausting missions, but more often than not he would drag himself back to his Brooklyn apartment. The neighborhood he lived in was not the same from his youth, he knew the memories would be too painful to face there, so he chose an apartment a few blocks down on a nice street and moved his few personal items from before the ice into the space. 

Steve had been living quietly, keeping a low profile as a civilian between missions with the Avengers and working on developing his art skills, was even considering getting a dog. He didn’t see his neighbors very often, polite interactions in the hallway seemed to be enough for most people. It was a particularly quiet Friday afternoon, Steve was sitting at his kitchen table shading a scene he had sketched out at the park earlier that morning, when he heard loud barking and cursing from the hallway right outside his door. He walked to the door and slowly opened his door to see a young woman struggling to carry two boxes while keeping a tight grip on the leash in her hand that was attached to a large black dog that was currently barking at a bee buzzing in the hall.

“Damn it, Bear, shut your trap!” a woman’s voice huffed in apparent frustration. She stopped outside of apartment 311, dropped the boxes onto the ground, and began fumbling in her bag for something. She appeared to be in her mid-twenties, had long dark hair that hung in waves, pale skin, and had a curvy profile that left Steve’s mouth dry. The woman continued rummaging in her messenger bag, when the dog suddenly leaped down the hall towards Steve, still focused on the buzzing bee, causing the woman to drop the leash. “Bear! No!” she shrieked.

Steve managed to shake himself from watching her, and snatched up the leash from the ground as it was dragged past him. The dog stopped short, realizing he’d been caught, and began to bark at the stranger holding his leash.

“Bear, I swear to God, I should’ve left you with Emily,” she said as she walked toward Steve, and he could hear the distinctly southern accent in her voice. “Thank you for catching him. I love the furball, but he his such a pain in the ass sometimes!”

“You’re welcome, ma’am,” Steve said, handing the leash over as she raised an eyebrow in amusement, and effectively shushed the still-barking dog.

“Ma’am, huh? And I was told people didn’t have manners in New York. The name’s Darcy Lewis, and it looks like I’m your new neighbor.”

Steve smiled politely, and stuck out his hand to shake hers. “Steve Rogers, 312.”

“Nice to meet you Steve. And you’ve kinda met Bear, my annoying-but-still-lovable puppy. Any chance you aren’t busy? I know it’s putting you on the spot, but I could really use some help moving my stuff in. My friend was supposed to be here to help, but an emergency came up at work, and well...she’s a science nerd, can’t pull herself away.” 

Darcy said all of this very quickly, looking at him with hopeful blue eyes, and as a gentleman, he obliged. “M’not busy, I can help you.”

“Oh my gosh, thank you! I’ll totally pay you in food, because I’m one hell of a cook,” Darcy gushed as she unlocked the door to her apartment, pulling her dog inside as Steve effortlessly lifted the two heavy boxes she was reaching for. “Dude, you are going to come in very handy around here with muscles like that.”

Steve chuckled in response, and felt his ears go a little red. He still had no idea how to be around women, although he was getting better with the help of Pepper Potts and Natasha Romanoff. But he had not met someone like Darcy in a long time, in fact she reminded him of the last dame he’d had any interest in, Peggy Carter. He couldn’t decide if that was a good or bad thing. He shook his head slightly and followed her into the apartment with the boxes. 

“Oh, you can set those down anywhere in here,” Darcy gestured to the living room area with a sweep of her arm. “I’m gonna lock the beast in my room for now, he likes to run through open doors and I do not need him getting out into the streets of Brooklyn.”

Steve set down the boxes and waited for Darcy to emerge from the back of the apartment where he supposed the bedroom was. Her space was set up exactly like his, so he had a fairly good idea of the layout of the apartment.

After about 3 more trips down to her car, which was packed completely full, they had everything inside. It helped that Steve was able to carry more than an ordinary man could, though he tried to be careful not to reveal too much strength. He didn’t want to raise suspicions about who he was, he’d been able to remain anonymous since the Battle of New York and wanted to keep it that way.

“Lord love a duck, moving is hell. And I hate stairs,” Darcy panted out as they set down their last set of boxes in her kitchen. “How the hell are you not even a little bit winded? Steroids, right?” she asked, eyeing Steve with a joking expression.

Steve just laughed, as he had no idea what to say, or what she was even talking about. “Nope, no steroids ma’am. I’m, uh, ex-military.”

“Okay, really, the ‘ma’am’ thing was cute at first, but now I feel old. So just call me Darcy, yeah?” 

“Okay, Darcy.”

“Awesome. Thanks for your help, you probably saved me from having a heart attack right there on the stairs, so hey, you’re my hero,” she said with a grin.

“No problem, glad I could help,” Steve said as he turned to leave.

“Hey, Steve!” Darcy called after him as he stopped in the hall, just before reaching his door. “Any food allergies I need to know about? I was serious when I said I’d pay you in food.”

Steve began to protest that she didn’t need to do anything, that he was helping because it was the right thing to do, when she held a hand up to stop him. “You can either tell me now, or I’ll just keep bugging you. You should know I’m a very persistent person.”

He just smiled at her and said, “No allergies to anything. Welcome to the neighborhood, Darcy.” She turned around with a smug grin, and went back into her apartment as Steve entered his own and closed the door. He spent the rest of his evening finishing his sketch from the park, and began to absently draw, letting his hand move across the page with a mind of it’s own. As he drew, he couldn’t help but think that Stark had been right, his life was a little boring. Well, as boring as getting called out to fight some kind of crazy villain every other week could be. Steve just wasn’t ready to get back out into the world again.

He couldn’t know it then, but with the arrival of Miss Darcy Lewis in his life, things were about to become decidedly less boring.

 

************************************************************************************************************************************************

 

“What’s this meeting about, Stark? I’m losing very valuable time at the shooting range, I really wanted to play with my new bow,” Clint Barton asked as he walked into the conference room where the rest of the Avengers were already assembled. He took his usual spot next to Natasha, who was sitting quietly waiting for said meeting to begin. 

“All I know is Pepper said to be here at 0900 on the dot, she had someone to introduce to the team. Beyond that, you’re guess is as good as mine. Well, probably not as good as mine, since I’m a genius and everything,” Tony said, sounding every bit his usual arrogant, snarky self.

At this Thor let out a barking laugh, and held a smug grin on his face. “Man of Iron, I do believe that for the first time, my guess would be better than yours, since I do in fact know who Miss Potts is introducing to the team.”

Steve couldn’t help but laugh at Tony’s blank look of shock, for he often teased Thor about his level of intelligence compared to his own, or his girlfriend, Jane Foster. “Looks like the God of Thunder got one over on you, Stark.”

“Whatever.”

Steve chuckled, and looked back down at the page he had been sketching on, which was taking shape as a rough drawing of Bear, his new neighbor’s dog. It had been three days since Darcy moved in, and Steve had seen her briefly, mostly coming and going. She had even brought him a plate of homemade cinnamon rolls her first morning in the building, as payment for helping her move her “shit ton of stuff” as she put it. They had been the highlight of Steve’s week so far, and he had cleaned the plate in about five minutes. Metabolism problems.

He was so absorbed in his doodling, he didn’t notice Pepper had entered the room with a young brunette woman trailing behind her, until someone cleared their throat. Steve snapped his head up, and instantly locked eyes with none other than Darcy Lewis, standing at Pepper’s side, wide blue eyes looking at him in shock. 

“Good morning everyone, glad you could make it on short notice. I’d like to introduce Darcy Lewis, the newest member of our team. Since the Avengers initiative is not affiliated with SHIELD officially, and the bulk of the team’s activity occurs here at Stark, we’ve taken measures to make sure you all have the tools you need to be successful. Darcy here is a nurse, and will be assisting Dr. Banner in his medical duties for the team, as well as taking over some of his duties that are in her scope of practice. We’re hoping at that Dr. Banner will have more time to devote to his research, and Darcy will handle all medical needs that she is able. She comes highly recommended, and is a personal friend of mine, so her clearance is no matter.”

“Lady Darcy, it is good to see you again! My Jane has spoken happily of this joyous news for weeks! We are most glad to be working with you!” Thor exclaimed after Pepper finished her explanation of Darcy’s role. He stood from the table and swooped her into a bone-crushing hug, a radiant smile on his face. 

“Hi Thor. Ok, hard to breathe...need oxygen -” Darcy managed to squeak out as released her from his colossal arms.

“Wait, you know Thor?” Tony asked, looking very much out of the loop.

“Yeah, I was assisting Jane when he landed in New Mexico. I was the one that dropped him like a bag of potatoes with my taser,” Darcy said, beaming proudly. 

“Her weapon of lightning is quite formidable,” Thor admitted, grinning proudly at Darcy as though she were his little sister.

“Well, welcome to the team Darcy,” Tony said, looking adequately impressed.

As the rest of the team introduced themselves to Darcy, Steve was glued to his seat. Had Darcy moving in next door to him been a ploy to have a way to keep tabs on him? Pepper didn’t seem the type to do that, so he chalked it up to coincidence, something he typically didn’t believe in. 

When Steve realized the room had grown quiet, he looked up to see everyone else had gone on their way, except Darcy and Pepper. Steve shook himself from his thoughts and found his manners, and went to the front of the room where the women were standing.

“Captain Rogers, this is -” Pepper began, but was cut off by Darcy.

“Captain Rogers, eh? And here you told me you were ex-military,” she said with a teasing grin, crossing her arms over her chest.

“Technically, I was honorably discharged, no longer on active duty,” Steve said sheepishly as he ran a hand over the back of his neck.

Pepper looked between the two of them, trying to figure out exactly what was happening. “I’m sorry, you know each other?”

“He’s kind of my neighbor. You remember me telling you about the guy that helped me move my stuff in and foiled Bear’s escape attempt? Here he is,” Darcy said, gesturing at Steve with one hand.

“So he’s the hot blonde that you -” Pepper began, but stopped when she saw Darcy’s death glare and Steve’s cheeks turn faintly pink.

“And with that, I’m out of here. Gotta go see Dr. Banner, get our stuff set up. Good to see ya, Steve! Later Pepper!” Darcy said as she began backpedaling to the door of the conference room. 

Pepper quirked her eyebrow at Steve, who simply shrugged. As if she could read his earlier thoughts, she told him “I had no idea she was your neighbor, I promise. This wasn’t planned at all.”

“No problem, just a funny coincidence,” Steve said. “But I’m confused, how do you know her? And if she’s a nurse, what was she doing interning for Dr. Foster?”

Pepper looked at him with a serious face, and Steve could see her choosing her words very carefully. “I know her from our hometown, I was friends with her older sister. We’ve stayed in touch over the years, and I’ll leave it at that. She’s got an interesting story, but it’s hers to tell, so you guys should talk. It’d do her good to have a friend here; she’s not a city girl, and this is a pretty intimidating team to become a part of overnight.”

“She seems so young, though. How much experience does she have with nursing? Is she really ready for something like this?” Steve wondered aloud.

“She’s 25, and absolutely brilliant even if she plays it down most of the time. Darcy has many layers, every one of them interesting. Yes, she’s ready for this. Again, you should talk to her, I think you’ll find you have a lot in common,” Pepper encouraged Steve, who completely missed the sly look on her face because he was still looking at the door where Darcy had left.

He didn’t know why, and acknowledged that it sounded crazy, but he felt pulled to Darcy, like she was someone he had to get to know. He found himself agreeing with Pepper, nodding his head absently. 

“Friends would be good.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Got this updated waaay faster than expected. We get some Darcy point of view here, and a little backstory. Enjoy!

Darcy couldn’t believe where her life had taken her so far. Just three years ago she was a college graduate, having completed her nursing degree early (hey, summer clinicals went way faster and she wanted to get done!), and with her nursing license finally in hand, she began looking for a job. This proved difficult. Who knew that when she graduated nursing school it would be a time where nursing jobs were hard to find? She certainly never expected it, but Darcy Lewis is nothing if not flexible, and rolled with the punches. 

(start flashback)  
One day when she was in a coffee shop in her small hometown in Tennessee scouring the newspaper help wanted ads for any job she could find (she was literally eating peanut butter and crackers so she could pay the rent), she couldn’t help but over hear many frustrated sighs from a woman at the table next to her. Turns out an over-caffeinated and understaffed astrophysicist was not one to cross, as Darcy learned when she fixed the woman with a glare, earning an even scarier glare in return. 

Jane Foster then spilled her problem to Darcy, since she seemed to have that affect on people. “I seriously just need a person with a brain, and working appendages that can help me with my research equipment. But nope, not a single applicant! Apparently going to New Mexico with an astrophysicist to study anomalies is just too much...” Jane trailed off, looking extremely put out.

“What does the job entail?” Darcy inquired.

“Basically my assistant would help with data input, help keep me organized, work in the field as needed. I can’t pay anything, but the grant would cover all lodging and living expenses, so it’s like getting paid.”

“Where do I sign up?” Darcy said, her face serious despite Jane’s dismissive laughter. 

“Wait, really?” Jane asked, eyebrows shooting up into her hairline.

“Yep. I got this bachelor’s degree that’s not going to a whole lot of use right now, can’t find a job in the one field we all thought would be safe. And who knows, maybe a change of scenery would be good for me,” Darcy shrugged as she answered. 

Next thing she knew, Norse gods existed and shady Agent still had not returned her iPod. After that fiasco, Darcy was content to see what other adventures working with Jane would bring, especially since the two had become friends. But family shit turned up at home, just like it always did, and Darcy found herself back in Tennessee. By that time her sister had completely gone off the deep end, and was in prison for what looked to be a long time. But hey, at least she’d be getting the help she needed, silver lining and all. 

Darcy had finally been using her degree, working as a night shift nurse in the emergency department of a moderately large hospital for two years, when her friend Pepper Potts called her bright and early as she was driving home from a particularly brutal shift.

“Darcy, were you still looking to get out and see the world?” Pepper asked when Darcy answered her phone.

“Hell yes! You know I’m always up for adventure. I was just beginning to think that the South was getting a little boring,” Darcy told the older woman. She and her sister, Ann, had been the best of friends growing up, and Darcy always tagged along as the younger sister. Pepper had been a huge help when Ann started getting into trouble; seeking out legal counsel, recommending the best doctors and rehab programs. Unfortunately, all the help in the world wouldn’t help if Ann didn’t want it. But Darcy and Pepper stayed in touch, Pepper promising to keep an eye out for job opportunities for Darcy to use her nursing skills.

“Well, a job that I think would be perfect for you just became available here at Stark Industries. How do you feel about New York?”

After Darcy learned that the opportunity Pepper had in mind was to be personal RN to VIP members of Stark Tower (aka the freaking Avengers!), she couldn’t get packed fast enough. Okay, so she was a little sad to be leaving her roommate and best friend since college, Emily, but she knew this was literally a once in a lifetime offer and she’d be an idiot to pass it up. So she loaded her car with everything that would fit, including her beast of a black lab, Bear, and set out to the big city.  
(end flashback)

“So I moved into a decent apartment in Brooklyn, coincidentally next door to Captain America, and now I’m here to help you. And play with my new toys,” Darcy said, as she finished telling her story to an intrigued Dr. Banner as she let her eyes roam over the new technology in the exam room they were setting up. So many shiny new toys.

“That’s quite a story, Miss Lewis,” Dr. Banner said with a smirk in his voice. “I for one am glad you’re here. Most of the stuff you’ll deal with is basic first aid, some minor injuries, but given your history working in an emergency department, and level of intelligence exhibited on your nursing license exam, I’m confident you can handle this job. But you should still come to me with any questions or anything you need help with.”

“Will do, Doc,” Darcy quipped, holding the new device that illuminated veins in the event of a difficult IV stick. The doctors back at home would flip a lid if they saw the stuff she had at her disposal now. Coming from a very rural hospital with limited resources made her appreciate the fancy supplies that seemed to be ordinary around Stark.

“Please, call me Bruce.”

“Okay, and you can call me Darcy. I’m assuming you have files on everyone, baseline vitals, blood tests, all that fun stuff?” Darcy asked, doing her best to switch into professional mode. She wanted to make a good impression, especially since Bruce had mentioned her exam score, which she had no idea he could even see. Oh well, Pepper could probably get her hands on almost anything she wanted, she was just glad to know she owned that test (suck it, NCLEX!). Seriously, it had been hell.

“Yes, you’ll find the paper charts in the file cabinet in your office. It’s obviously locked, we can’t have anyone finding that vulnerable information. Only you and I have access to it. Your code for it is located in your office, please memorize it then shred the paper.”

“Sweet! So when y’all aren’t out getting hurt saving the world from the bad guys and other idiots messing around with science that’s too advanced for them, what do I do?” Darcy asked, curious as to how she would earn her keep. She also hated being bored.

“I’ll have you review treatment protocols, as well as work on getting your advanced practice license, that way you can prescribe medications legally. Also, monthly vitals have to be assessed and you’ll find that wrangling everyone into it can very well take two weeks. They aren’t the most cooperative patients,” Bruce explained with a light laugh. “And basically you’ll be on call 24/7. Which is why Tony is going to try and talk you into moving into the Tower, just so you know.”

“Yep, he’s already done that. I explained to him the need for my own space, and he also didn’t seem too keen on Bear drooling all over the place,” Darcy replied, remembering the look of horror on Tony’s face when she mentioned her dog’s habit of creating massive puddles of drool in his sleep. “We’re good in Brooklyn.”

Darcy smiled to herself, thinking that if she’d been mildly crushing on her smoking hot neighbor before, knowing now that he was a bonafide hero made it so much worse. She’d always been a sucker for a man in uniform, even if it was a star-spangled one. Seriously, the spandex worked on Steve.

“If I may, I think it will be good for you to get to know the Captain. He’s still figuring things out, maybe you can help each other,” Bruce interrupted her thoughts with a glint in his eye that she wasn’t too sure she liked.

“Yeah, we can totally be buds,” Darcy said. “I’m going to go see my office now, get it set up. Man, I feel so legit, I have a freaking office. Seriously, if Professor Westman could see me now! That woman told me I’d never be a nurse, that I wasn’t smart or focused enough. Joke’s on her now!” Darcy exclaimed as she bounced out of the exam room, leaving a laughing Bruce behind her. 

As she walked down the hall to her office (her office!), Darcy was thankful that her job allowed her to wear her scrubs and comfy shoes. Unlike the other women in the building whose professional look meant skirts and heels, Darcy enjoyed wearing her brightly colored, sometimes crazy-patterned scrubs. She was still grinning like a fool as she pressed her finger to the fingerprint scanner on the door in order to get into the office. 

“I totally feel like a spy right now,” she said quietly to herself, opening the door and making herself at home in the room. It was by no means a small office, considering it managed to fit multiple file cabinets along one wall, a large wooden desk with a flashy computer (more new tech toys!), and two chairs in front of the desk for guests/patients. 

Darcy made her way around the room, making sure that she could get logged into her computer, and memorized her code to the file cabinet where records were kept, then sent the paper through the shredder as Bruce requested. After settling into her new digs, she glanced at the clock, shocked to realize it was 5:00 already. ‘Yep, I think that’s about enough for today’ Darcy thought to herself, grabbing her purse and locking her office behind her. 

As she made her way to the lobby of the building through the various halls and elevators (she might need to make a map of this place), Darcy pondered what to do for dinner. She had no desire to cook, and felt that she needed to celebrate her first day on the job, and surviving her first meeting with the Avengers. Just as she was debating between the little sushi place on her block, or the Italian restaurant that was on the way back to her apartment, she heard a familiar voice call her name.

She looked up to see Steve walking into the lobby of the Tower, coming towards her with a smile on that beautiful face of his, blue eyes practically sparkling. He quickly caught up to her where she had stopped, smiling somewhat shyly as he stood before her.

“How was your first day?” Steve asked politely.

“It was great. Bruce is awesome to work with, that guy is seriously funny under all that angst and repressed emotion. And I have an office, which is insane! But yeah, it was good,” Darcy said, speaking very fast in her excitement.

“I’m glad it was good. Heading home for the night?” Steve inquired.

“Yeah, I was debating where I should go for dinner; you know, celebration that I survived my first day.”

“There’s a great Italian place on the way back to Brooklyn. I knew the owners back in my day, their granddaughter runs it now. They use the original recipes, too.”

“Sweet! Italian it is, then,” Darcy said, looping her arm through Steve’s and pulling him along with her. “You’re coming with me neighbor, we can totally celebrate together.”

Steve just grinned at her, allowing himself to be steered out the door by Darcy. She was going to have dinner with Captain America. The perfect end to her amazing day. 

So, of course that’s when all hell would break loose.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cliffhanger! Thanks to everyone who has read/comment/left kudos on this story! I'm blown away by the response to just the first chapter. Hope you enjoyed this one! :) 
> 
> PS: I couldn't figure out how to make italics, so I left indicators about where the flashback starts and ends.


	3. Chapter 3

Ch. 3

Explosions echoed off of the buildings around Stark Tower as Darcy and Steve stood on the sidewalk, surveying what was happening. The two shared a look of exasperation, with more than a little trepidation in Darcy’s face, as Steve turned them around to head back into the Tower, already pulling out his cell phone.

“Stark, what’s going on?” Steve demanded in what Darcy now knew was his I’m-Captain-America-so-you’d-better-answer-me voice.

Darcy found herself following behind Steve as he directed her to follow him through the crowd in the lobby, fighting to get to the back elevator that she knew was reserved for VIPs (who were they trying to fool, it was for the Avengers). “I’m on my way up now, Darcy’s coming with me,” Steve told Tony before hanging up. He looked at her with confidence she didn’t normally see in his expression as he grabbed her hand to keep her moving against the tide of bodies. “C’mon, I’ll get you to your office, then meet the team. You’ll need to be prepared for injuries. Looks like some idiot is experimenting with tech that is clearly now out of control.”

“Yes sir,” Darcy said jokingly, making Steve roll his eyes as they finally made it to their destination and began the ride up to her office. She was secretly relishing the feel of her hand in his, because he had yet to drop it and she sure as hell wasn’t going to pull away. Holding hands with Captain America for five minutes? Story for the grandchildren right there.

“Be careful, Darcy. If the Tower comes under attack get to the panic room and stay there until we come get you.” “

Steve, I’ll be fine! I survived night shifts on weekends in a college town in the emergency department for longer than I care to think about. I can handle this shit,” Darcy said, voice full of confidence that wasn’t quite there.

“I’m sure you can.” Steve looked down and seemed to just then realize he was still holding onto her, and quickly dropped her hand. As the elevator doors opened, he was all business again, taking off to meet the other Avengers with a final nod at her.

Darcy sighed, turning to hurry down the hallway to her office to get her equipment ready and grab her jump bag, just in case. She couldn’t help but notice that the nervous, fluttery feeling in her stomach hadn’t quite gone away yet, but she chalked it up to nerves. First day on the job and there was already a situation that required the Avengers. Talk about trial by fire. She moved to the window of her office, watching the skirmish take place outside. A large robot that closely resembled a scorpion was crashing through the street below, blasting cars into ash with some kind of laser-thing. Whatever, Darcy didn’t speak robot.

She could make out Thor’s red cape flying around the robot as he used Myueh-Myueh to attempt to electrify it with lightning; this wasn’t working at so well, leaving Thor to begin just hitting it in strategic places. This seemed to be more effective, but the thing was still moving. Darcy could make out Natasha and Clint firing at it repeatedly with their preferred firearms to distract and confuse the machine while they helped herd civilians off the street. Then a large green blur came running at the robot, and began literally tearing pieces of the robot apart. The Hulk was seriously awesome. Tony was flying around the whole situation in the Iron Man suit, taking shots at the robot, and helping to identify safe places for civilians to hide while the battle took place.

Then there was Steve, in his seriously glorious Captain America get-up (thank sweet baby Jesus for that red, white, and blue wonder), using his shield to protect civilians from being hit by robot laser-fire and getting them to safety while calling out orders to his team.

Darcy shook herself from watching the skirmish, knowing that she should be getting things ready for various types of injuries or emergencies. Turning back to her desk, she grabbed her jump bag and made her way to the medical unit where the treatment area was. About ten minutes later, she heard the disembodied voice of a British man begin talking to her.

“Miss Lewis, I have been instructed to inform you that the battle is over. Dr. Banner sustained some minor lacerations that will require your attention, Agent Romanov has a likely sprained wrist, and Captain Rogers suspects a few broken ribs as well as two moderate lacerations that may require sutures.” Darcy stood there agape, until it dawned on her that it was Jarvis talking to her, not her own imaginary inner monologue.

“O-okay. Thanks Jarvis,” she managed to get out.

“You’re most welcome Miss Lewis. And welcome to the team, it will be a pleasure to work with you I’m sure.”

Seriously, how did an AI manage to sound so smooth and refined? Darcy would have to remember to ask Tony if he had a thing for the British. Darcy smiled to herself thinking about Iron Man fangirling over Tom Hiddleston or Benedict Cumberbatch (she’ll take one of each, please!), when the door to the unit opened.

Tony was supporting a clearly exhausted, bleeding Bruce Banner, while Natasha walked in behind them, Clint at her side. Steve and Thor followed closely after the two assassins, Thor beaming with pride at Darcy as she began to work on Bruce.

“Well, y’all definitely know how to make a girl feel welcome. Here I was thinking I would probably never be needed,” Darcy quipped dryly as she cleaned Bruce’s wounds.

Technically, he wasn’t bleeding nearly as bad as Steve, but _Captain Rogers_ was being a stubborn-ass man and refused to be seen until his team members were fixed first. Darcy finished cleaning Bruce’s lacerations, and dressed them with small butterfly bandages. In all honesty, he probably could’ve done it himself, but she figured he was tired from Hulking out, and wanted to set an example that the others should follow of letting her treat him.

“We aim to please,” Tony said. “West Virginia, right?”

Darcy looked at him, wondering if she had missed something. “Huh?”

“The accent. You’re from West Virginia,” Tony said, grinning smugly as Darcy began examining Natasha’s wrist. The woman was completely silent, which Darcy would have found intimidating if not for the fact that the two had totally bonded over a love for guns this morning when they first met. Darcy seemed like the last person that should have access to firearms, but it was a well-kept secret that she was a great shot and liked to hunt. Eh, whatever, she was a country girl.

“Not quite, Tony. But good try,” Darcy said. Turning to Natasha, she said, “Your wrist is just a little bruised, nothing big. I can wrap it if you want, but I figure you’ll be fine with some ice and Aleve.”

“Thanks, Darcy, I’m good from here,” Natasha said, heading toward the door to exit the room. She turned back to look at Darcy, and with a sly grin said, “Welcome to the team.”

Clint, who had somehow managed to get through the event unscathed, looked at Darcy as he followed Natasha to the door, and quirked an eyebrow in question. “How did you get on her good side so quick?”

“We talked about the pros and cons of our favorite guns this morning,” Darcy answered nonchalantly, earning a look of shock from everyone in the room. “What? I grew up in the country, and I hunt. I know guns.”

Clint grinned at her as he walked out the door, promising a trip to the firing range sometime soon. Tony just gaped, and Steve, who had been quietly watching Darcy work of fixing his teammates, was realizing how much there was to this character named Darcy Lewis.

“Georgia, right?” Tony guessed again, while Darcy laughed at his persistence.

“Didn’t Pepper tell you where I’m from? Or how she knows me?” Darcy asked.

“Nope, she said it would be more fun to make me guess. Said your accent would give it away, but clearly I’m not as gifted as I once thought.”

“Whoa, did Tony Stark just admit to being less clever than he thought he was? Well, I wonder if it really is the end of the world?” Darcy said.

Steve decided he liked that Darcy would go toe-to-toe with Stark. Tony just eyed her quietly, then flashed her a mischievous grin. “I like you, kid. Do me a favor and stick around, I need someone who can actually throw some sass my way.”And with that, he strode out of the room, likely in search of Pepper to interrogate her about Darcy’s background, leaving just Steve and Darcy in the room.

“Alright, get up here Captain,” Darcy directed him, patting her hand on the exam table after changing the sheet. “Let’s take inventory of the damage.”

“I’m fine really, probably don’t even need to be here. The serum helps me heal really fast, usually a broken rib takes a few hours to fix itself, and cuts eventually stop bleeding...” Steve trailed off as Darcy held up a hand to silence him, fixing him with a look that was all business.

“Steve, I don’t care how fast you heal, or if you’ve managed to dodge medical treatment for your injuries in past events. But I’ve got news for you: the serum helps you heal, I get that, but you’re still human and repeated mismanagement of injuries could still cause infection, poor healing, etc.” Darcy explained. “So, get your ass over here and let me do my job. Please.”

Steve wasn’t sure he’d been fearful of a woman since Peggy fired her gun at him to test his shield, but he was certainly concerned about the consequences if he didn’t listen to Darcy now. Her facial expression alone was more than a little scary. “Yes, ma’am.” As he made his way over to the table, he attempted to roll his shirt sleeves up so she could get to the cuts on his arms that were still bleeding pretty heavily.

Darcy turned back toward him after grabbing fresh supplies, when she saw his struggle and rolled her eyes. “Steve, I hate to break it to you, but the shirt is gonna have to come off. Gotta see your arms and your ribs.”

His cheeks turned a bit pink, and he began to say something about it not being polite to take his shirt off in front of a lady when she cut him off, again. “Dude, I’m a nurse. If you think I haven’t seen more naked people than anyone should ever see in one lifetime, then you’re wrong,” Darcy laughed, then considered something she hadn’t thought about before. “Unless you’re shy? Then I totally have some of those seriously horrendous hospital gowns.”

“No, it’s fine. You’re right,” he said as he stripped off his shirt.

‘Holy shit! Okay, Darcy, breathe, breathe. It’s just another human body, you’re a professional.’ she thought to herself. ‘But he’s so pretty! God, look at the muscle....Bad, Darcy!’ she argued in her mind, doing her best to maintain outward composure as Steve settled himself on the table.

“Okay, so those cuts are actually kinda deep, and this will probably sting like a bitch,” Darcy told Steve as she eyed the three deep lacerations scattered over his left arm and began flushing the area with sterile water. As the water ran through his wounds and into the basin below his arm, she could see his jaw tighten and arm muscles strain. “I’d offer to let you squeeze my hand, but it might not make it,” she said jokingly.

Steve laughed, nodding. “It took me a solid few weeks to figure out how to control my strength, learn how to move without hurting myself or anyone. I broke more coffee mugs than I care to think about.”

“Yeah, that’d be quite the adjustment.”

“It was. It took a while to get used to not being invisible, too. To have people actually see me as more than a weak, asthmatic guy...” Steve trailed off in thought.

Darcy looked at him until he returned her gaze, and said “Clearly you weren’t invisible. Dr. Erskine saw something in you, and I’m glad he took a chance on you. Not many people would’ve done what you did with the chance you were given, to make sure you were always a good man first, and not a perfect soldier.”

Steve looked at Darcy, hearing her words echo with the one’s Dr. Erskine had said to him the night before the experiment had taken. This dame, who he’d really only just met, already had become a friend, confidante. It made him miss Bucky so much it hurt, adding to the pain he felt in his wounds.

Darcy’s voice shook him from his thoughts as she explained that his wounds really should be sutured, and she could do it or go get Dr. Banner to do it, since she technically wasn’t supposed to know how to do that particular skill. “What can I say? I like to learn and was really good buddies with an ER resident who liked to teach. I’m a rebel like that.”

Steve chuckled, wondering how he was still surprised at the things that came out of her mouth, and told her he was fine with her doing it. After closing his cuts, and taping his ribs to help support them until the serum healed them completely, Darcy proclaimed that she was done with him. He thanked her for her care, and dismissed himself to his room in the Tower. He wasn’t going to make the trek back to Brooklyn with how tired he was. Also, the pain.

The serum caused his metabolism to burn through painkillers too quickly, so he had to deal with the pain. Darcy had apologized profusely for this, determined that “those damn scientists need to freaking find a way to make medicine that helps your pain, you’re a hero for crying out loud!” As he made his way into his bed, collapsing carefully so as not to upset his injuries further, he realized that his pain hadn’t been all that bad until he was in his room. He just added that to the list of things he knew about Darcy Lewis: she was a healing spirit who swore like a sailor, was sassy enough to stand up to Tony Stark, apparently had an affinity for firearms, and was charming as she was sarcastic.

And every single one those traits meant two things: she was a firecracker, and he was in great danger of falling for her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Sorry took so long to update, but the muse hit me upside the head and now I'm making progress on this again :)


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Y'all are awesome, let me just say that first! I know it's been forever since I posted, but major life events (moving, switching shifts at work, etc) have happened recently and I finally got a chance to edit tonight! Thanks so much for your patience and encouragement. Enjoy!  
> *Also I should note there is a minor character death, nothing graphic but if any sort of cardiac arrest episode/CPR is a trigger, please read with caution*
> 
> Again, I don't own Marvel anything, just like playing in the universe they provided :)

Ch. 4

Darcy woke up to the sound of her phone ringing quite loudly from it’s place on her nightstand in her dark apartment. As she looked at it with bleary eyes, she was able to make out Jane’s number, and see that it was currently 3:45 in the morning. The tones of the Super Mario Bros. ringtone continued to grow louder as Darcy fumbled to answer the phone, mumbling a raspy “Hello?”

“Miss Lewis, I apologize for the hour, but you are needed at Stark Tower. Immediately.”

“Jarvis?” Darcy asked, still mostly asleep and wondering why the AI was calling her.

“Yes Miss Lewis. Dr. Banner requested I call you in immediately, he requires your assistance with a medical problem.”

“Ok, just give me a sec. I’ll be there as soon as I can, but it might be a bit. My car is on the fritz this week, so it’ll be a cab or the subway,” Darcy grumbled, still pissed about the whole thing. Who knew the little light shaped like an engine meant she should have it checked instead of letting it go for 3 weeks? Well, she did, now.

“I’ve taken the liberty of contacting Captain Rogers. He will be more than happy to escort you to the Tower, Miss Lewis,” Jarvis explained. “He should be coming to collect you any moment.”

At that moment, of course, Darcy heard a quiet knock on her door. By that time she had finished getting dressed, which at too-freaking-early o’clock in the morning meant putting on a bra under her t-shirt and real pants instead of the tiny shorts she normally slept in, and sliding on her sneakers. Grabbing her messenger bag, she flew to the front door and opened it to see Steve standing there, awkwardly shuffling his feet and looking slightly amused at her early morning appearance. Whatever, she wasn’t used to getting up this early. One thing Darcy’s friends and family always knew: don’t interrupt her sleep or there would be hell to pay.

“Yep, he’s here. Thanks Jarvis, we’ll be there soon,” Darcy said as she quickly shut the door to stop Bear’s escape attempt. He could be heard whining through the door, and Darcy only hoped he would calm down before he woke up any neighbors. 

“Will he be okay on his own?” Steve asked, brow furrowed in concern. 

“Eh, he’ll be fine. If I’m gone for too long I’ll have Jane come let him out. Or Thor, he loves that dog, they’re seriously like besties,” Darcy said as she led Steve away from her door and toward the stairs. “But I’m sorry you got dragged into this. I really would’ve been okay to take a cab or something.” She felt bad that he was losing sleep too.

“No problem, Darcy. I wasn’t sleeping anyway, and I would not feel right letting you go out by yourself this late at night. Not that you couldn’t handle yourself,” Steve backpedaled quickly at her glare. “I just...well, you’re a beautiful dame and -”

“It’s okay Steve. I know what you meant, my feminist ways just get a little excited sometimes,” Darcy said, wanting to put him at ease. “Anyhow, where are you parked?”

Steve chuckled and led her over to a vintage-lookin motorcycle sitting alongside the curb. 

“Um, you’re kidding right?” Darcy asked, trying her best to keep the fear out of her voice. 

Steve smiled, hearing the hesitancy in her tone, and assured her, “You’re safe with me, Darcy.”

She definitely didn’t mind the ride once it was established that she would have to hold onto Steve’s waist in order to stay on the bike. He was so sturdy, it eased her fear a bit. And, you know, rock hard abs. Gotta capitalize on every opportunity.

Once they got to the Tower, Steve walked with her to Dr. Banner’s office, which was completely deserted. Darcy and Steve looked at each other in confusion.

“Um, Jarvis? Where is Dr. Banner?” Darcy asked.

“He asks that you meet him in the medical bay, Miss Lewis,” Jarvis replied immediately.

Darcy simply shrugged her shoulders, and headed toward the medical wing with Steve walking beside her. He seemed a little too quiet for her liking, and it was making her twitchy. 

“Steve, you okay?” Darcy asked tentatively as they approached the door to their destination. 

He looked at her as she typed in her passcode to enter the room, that amused glint in his eye returning and a small smirk on his face, as he said, “I’m fine, just thinking.”

“About what? Because there’s some intense concentration on your face this morning, and it just seems way too early for that.”

“Well, if I’m being completely honest, I -” Steve was cut off as Bruce immediately grabbed Darcy’s arm to drag her into the medical bay. 

“Glad you’re here, Darcy. We’ve got a problem,” Bruce said as he drug her toward the holding area known as triage where 4 beds stood. One of them was occupied with a young woman who looked pale, tired and was covered in a nasty-looking rash. Darcy exchanged a worried glance with Steve before Bruce began to explain the situation.

“This is Ashley from Accounting. She came down with this illness very suddenly yesterday afternoon, and was brought to me instead of going to the hospital since she became ill so quickly and I have decent medical training. It began with fever and fatigue, then the vomiting and rash set in. I’ve tested for everything I can think of, she hasn’t reported being out of the country or around anyone else with similar symptoms...I honestly don’t know what we’re dealing with here,” Bruce sounded tired as he sighed and scrubbed his eyes. 

“Okay. So what do you need me to do Doc?” Darcy asked, assuming a professional air.

“Basically, I need you to be a nurse, just take care of her, keep her comfortable. I need time to study the blood samples and see what we can find out, and as much as I wanted to I can’t do both.”

“Absolutely Doc. It’s my job. Let me go change and get my equipment, I’ll be right back,” Darcy stated. Bruce had begun to smirk, with the same amusement in his eyes as had been in Steve’s, making her even more irritated. “What is with you guys tonight? Is my hair gross? Do I have something on my face?”

Bruce glanced at Steve whose cheeks were faintly pink, then looked back at Darcy. “No, nothing is wrong with your hair or face. I was just admiring your t-shirt and I think Steve probably was too, right Steve?”

Steve’s cheeks turned a bit more pink, but the look in his eyes turned her insides to a bit of a puddle. Holy shit, who knew he could look so boyish and sexy at the same time?! She then looked down at her t-shirt and saw what they meant. 

Darcy hadn’t even thought about the fact that when she didn’t change her shirt after getting out of bed, she had been sleeping in her Captain America shirt. It wasn’t like his face was on it or anything, but there was his shield, front and center on her chest. Darcy had gotten it from Jane as a gag gift, as well as shirts representing each of the Avengers, but she never wore them out of her apartment. Too embarrassing. And now, she had been wearing the emblem of her neighbor/friend/hot crush in his company for the better part of an hour. Kill her now, please. She couldn’t even look Steve in the eye as she turned to flee.

“Oh shit. Gotta scoot, gonna run to my office and be right back!” Darcy practically was shouting at the end of her statement in her frustration. She could hear Steve saying something to Banner about staying and helping as she left the room. This was going to be a long day.

Ten minutes later, freshly dressed in navy scrubs and her usual black shoes, Darcy returned to the triage room to begin working. She saw Bruce collecting some last samples as she prepared another bag of solution to hang and run in through Ashley’s IV. Steve was hanging around at the desk, using the computer for something, Darcy tried not to pay too much attention to him.

“Do I need to be concerned about precautions? Other than the usual gloves, and mask?” Darcy asked Bruce quietly when he was out of earshot of their patient.

“No, just make sure to use the standard precautions and you should be fine. I called the local hospitals and no one else has presented with these symptoms in the correct time frame, so I think this is a one-person case. Which makes it even more strange,” Bruce looked troubled as the wheels began turning in his head.

“Okay Doc, go science. I’ve got this; if I need anything I’ll holler for you,” Darcy said as she turned to her patient.

Ashley Carr was only 23 years old and had never had any health problems in her life except for a brief bout of chickenpox when she was a child. Darcy was puzzled, but put on a positive face for her patient, making sure Ashley was comfortable and checking her temperature every so often. No more fever since the medicine had kicked in, but she still looked exhausted, so pale and the rash was turning a weird shade of purple. 

“So, what’s up with you and hottie over there? Rogers right?” Ashley managed to croak out while Darcy was taking her vitals again.

“Um, we’re friends, and neighbors actually. Why do you ask?” Darcy questioned, chancing a glance at Steve who she had figured out was working on his history lessons. Getting him caught up on everything he missed shouldn’t be taking this long, Darcy was seriously considering stepping in to re-work whatever study plan SHIELD had provided.

“Maybe because you guys keep looking at each other when the other isn’t looking, and you were acting kind of twitchy when you first got here,” the young woman said with a smirk on her face.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, and you should be resting,” Darcy said, falling back on her nurse instincts and deflecting back to the patient. 

Ashley suddenly got a fearful look in her eyes and shook her head. “I don’t want to sleep, Darcy. I’m afraid I won’t wake up again.”

Darcy took her hand, and she could feel how cold Ashley’s fingers were even through the gloves she had on. “I can’t promise that nothing will happen, I learned that the hard way early in my career. But I can promise that I’ll be right here, watching over you and I will do my damndest to make sure you do wake up.”

It took a little while longer, but Darcy finally got Ashley to relax and sleep. Darcy, having nothing else to do, brought out her iPod (she kept it in a plastic baggy at work so it stayed totally germ-free) and began to read one of the few books she had stored on it while she sat a bit away from Ashley, enough room to give her some space, but close enough to keep an eye on her. A scuffling sound from behind her drew her attention to a pair of brilliant blue eyes focused on her with a smiling face attached to them.

“Hey Steve. Got your homework all done?” she teased as he quietly pulled up a chair to sit beside her.

“Yeah, I’m up to the eighties now. I think the only thing that’s gonna stick from that decade is the music,” Steve chuckled. 

“Oh my word, please tell me you’ve listened to the good stuff. None of that pop crap, but the real rock bands,” Darcy said with enthusiasm. Music was her thing. When Steve shrugged and looked a bit confused she went on, “Def Leppard? Poison? Duran Duran?”

“None of those sound familiar, so I’m gonna say no,” Steve admitted.

“What the hell are those idiots teaching you? Nope, that’s not okay. Do you have an iPod? We’re gonna get you an iPod and I’m loading it with music. I’ll be taking over the fine arts part of your education now, SHIELD can suck it!” she finished dramatically.

Steve just looked at her, barely containing his laughter, and agreed to her plan. He took a deep breath and seemed like he was about to say something when a sudden barrage of sounds began to fill the air. 

“Shit! Steve, get Bruce! Tell him she’s coding,” Darcy directed as she took off towards Ashley’s hospital bed, donning gloves and mask as she went to where the young woman lay perfectly still. The monitor that showed her heart rate was a line of fluttery waves, and they were growing smaller by the second. Steve took off running to Bruce’s office as Darcy began to perform CPR on the young woman.

“Damn it, Ashley, don’t you die on me. Don’t die, I’ve got your back,” Darcy was chanting over and over as she performed chest compressions, trying to revive her.

Bruce and Steve came running into the room, where Bruce immediately began to administer medications through the IV. Darcy looked up at Steve and demanded, “Do you know CPR?” He nodded. “Then get your ass over here and help me. My arms are about to give out, we’ll have to switch off. For now, do the breaths when I say,” Darcy instructed as Steve stood beside Ashley head with an oxygen mask that was attached to an ambu bag. 

After 40 minutes of CPR, and countless doses of epinephrine, which was supposed to restart her heart, Bruce called it. 

“Time of death 5:58 AM.”

Darcy was back on compressions at that time, and Steve had to reach over and stop her from continuing. 

“Darcy, stop. There’s nothing else we can do,” Steve said gently as he grabbed her wrists carefully and drew her to him.

“I told her I’d watch over her. Damn it, I should’ve been paying attention,” Darcy said as she struggled not to cry, and failed spectacularly. She hadn’t lost a patient in a long time, and had gotten comfortable in the world of superheroes who were hard to kill. It was a cruel reminder of the mortality of the rest of humanity, and the hard days that came with being a nurse.

“You did everything you could, doll. She just didn’t make it. It’s okay, Darcy. Shhh,” Steve held her to his chest and stroked her hair as Bruce turned off the monitors and machines. Bruce motioned for Steve to take Darcy out of the room, and the soldier nodded in understanding. 

Steve guided Darcy down the hall and to the elevator, all the while she was attached to him, sniffling into his chest as she tried to get her emotions back under control. He continued to shush her, speaking comforting words to her as they journeyed to the only place he knew that offered peace and quiet. When they arrived at the rooftop garden, a place that Pepper had quietly mentioned to Steve when she noticed the noise and activity of the Tower was too much for him sometimes, Steve found a chair to deposit Darcy in while he started a fire in the fire pit. There was still a chill in the air and Darcy was already shivering. After he got a fire going, he turned back to Darcy, and found her looking at her hands in her lap, and shaking her head.

“I’m sorry I lost it like that. I don’t know why, that’s not the first time that’s ever happened to me,” Darcy said, sounding disappointed in herself. 

“Have you ever lost anyone that young before?” Steve asked quietly.

“No, I guess I haven’t. I know it’s part of the job, but I still hate it. I guess I got used to not losing anyone recently,” Darcy shrugged as she answered. She peered up at Steve who was kneeling down next to her, eyes at her level. “Are you okay?”

Steve sighed and said, “Not the first time I’ve been in this situation either. In the war, we won most of our battles, but they all came with a cost, and that was almost always the lives of our boys. It’s good to not become hard to loss, means you’re still human.”

Darcy looked at Steve and saw the haunted memories flash across his eyes, the pain of his losses still recent in his mind. She took his hand in hers, and they just sat there together, dealing with their own sadness. As the sun began to rise higher in the sky, Darcy shook herself, and stood up, keeping Steve’s hand in hers as he rose with her.

“Thanks, Steve. I promise I’m not always an emotional basket case, but today has been trying to say the least,” Darcy said. “And thank you for helping us try to save her. Not many would be able to just jump in like you did.”

“Of course, doll. You were amazing, that helped me keep a level head in there, because I was freaking out, actually.”

Darcy chuckled, “Well, history does paint you as being good under pressure.” She realized their hands were still joined and slowly pulled her hand loose. Now was so not the time to act on her crush, but they were definitely going to have to address this thing between them soon otherwise she might completely go bonkers.

“Suppose we should go see Banner, find out what happened,” Steve said, bringing her back to reality. She nodded in agreement and they went back to medical the same way they came, not speaking as the gravity of the situation set in again.

When they returned to the triage area, Ashley’s body had been removed and the area cleaned and sanitized, all ready for the next patient. Darcy thickened her skin, and charged to Bruce’s office, knowing that’s where the doctor would be.

Sure enough, as Darcy rounded the corner to peek in the office, Bruce was there with a paper in his hand a grim expression on his face. He looked up as Darcy entered the office, Steve trailing behind her.

“You okay, Darcy?” Bruce asked.

“Yeah, I’m good. Sorry for losing it there for a bit,” Darcy said, somewhat embarrassed.

“Not a problem. I like that you aren’t hardened, keep that, you’ll need it,” Bruce said with a warm smile. “And thanks for your help too, Steve.”

Steve nodded in acknowledgement, and proceeded to ask, “What happened? Do you know why she suddenly died?”

Bruce’s troubled expression returned, as he looked at the paper in his hand once more before answering. “I’m going to call a meeting, of the entire team, Avengers, Jane, everyone. Ashley Carr was poisoned. This was murder.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Full disclosure: I am a registered nurse, and a co-worker of mine actually does the cell phone in a baggy at work (in the break room) to keep germs of the hospital off her device. It actually works! Hope you enjoyed, please feel free to leave a comment. I enjoy hearing from y'all :)


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, sorry it's been about 10 years since I updated. Life has been crazy, but is now slowing down, so I'm hoping to get more writing done soon! Thanks for all the kudos and comments, y'all are awesome! And thanks for sticking with me! Enjoy!
> 
> Also, not sure it was clearly stated but there was a roughly 2-month time jump between chapters 3 and 4. This chapter will pick up immediately following the events of chapter 4. Sorry if things weren't clear before.
> 
> As always, I don't own the Marvel characters. If I did, I wouldn't need to write this ;)

A few hours later, Darcy found herself in the midst of a long-running debate between Earth’s mightiest heroes, Pepper Potts and Jane included, and was considering the merit of crawling under the table for cover when she had an epiphany. 

So far ideas had been tossed around ranging from thinking it was a personal attack on the young woman, turning the problem over to the local police, and at one point someone even suggested telling Fury. That idea was stamped out pretty much immediately, being that not everyone trusted him and/or SHIELD since the events of New York when the Council threatened nuclear strike. But amidst the arguing, Darcy had a thought that she couldn’t keep to herself, so she spoke up.

“What if this had nothing to do with Ashley? Like, personally? That poison was fast-acting, and the timeline made no sense medically. And Banner said the molecular structure was shaky at best,” Darcy began to explain as those around her looked at her with open curiosity. “It’s almost like this was a test run. To see if the substance would work, and if it could happen on secure property. I think someone is messing with us.”

As Darcy’s words settled on the room, and met silence, she began to worry that she was way off the mark. Then she saw Clint and Natasha share a look, and both give minute nods in her direction. Steve and Thor also appeared to be processing the explanation, and their slow nodding indicated that they believed she might have been right.

“So you think someone in my organization, in my building, killed an employee right under my nose in order to prove a point?” Tony scoffed. “That would be the dumbest thing ever, since this is the not-so-secret hangout of the Avengers. Nice try, though, kid.”

“Stark, I swear to God, you call me ‘kid’ again...” Darcy began, but was cut off by a voice none of them were expecting. 

“Actually Stark, I believe Miss Lewis has the correct idea.”

Stunned silence tinged with disbelief filled the room as a man in a smart suit stepped through the door. Darcy knew him as Shady Agent aka iPod thief. The rest of the room knew him as SHIELD Agent Phil Coulson, who was supposed to be very much dead.

********

After a rather vague explanation of how Coulson was, you know, breathing, (‘Apparently some weird shit happens in Tahiti’ Darcy thought to herself) the group was in too much shock to continue their previous discussion. The overall feeling in the room was joy at the revelation that the agent was in fact not dead, but there was a steady undercurrent of mistrust and outright anger at having been kept in the dark for so long.

Steve in particular was upset. No, he was pissed. The death of Coulson had hung over his head for months, with Steve wondering to himself if he would have somehow been able to save the man had he made different decisions that day. He felt as though he had let the agent down, especially after the awkward trading card conversation. He hadn’t felt worthy of that kind of attention then, and after hearing of Coulson’s death, the guilt had threatened to eat him alive. 

So it should have been no surprise to anyone present that the Captain was first to leave the room, nearly at a sprint, in order to find some air and clear his head. 

Darcy watched a troubled-looking Steve exit the room before turning to study Coulson. The man looked as though he had never been skewered by Loki, and was actually the picture of health, outwardly. Which should not be possible given the injury that he had sustained; Darcy might have peeked at the file when she was accidentally hacking into SHIELD’s server one day for fun. She’d always been a computer whiz, her skills had needed brushing up, and one thing led to another...so she might have sneaked a peak at the file. Apparently there was more to the story than what was on record, which was not shocking since SHIELD was shady as hell. Something about Coulson’s story didn’t sit well with her, but right now what mattered was that he was alive and they had more pressing problems to deal with. 

“Son of Coul, I am overjoyed to find you well!” Thor’s voice boomed as he vigorously shook the Agent’s hand. The god of thunder was working on his “Midgardian greeting etiquette” as Darcy called it, forgoing his typical bone-crushing warrior-hug-thing he was accustomed to using on Asgard. ‘Cause, you know, badass warriors could handle that; humans not so much.

Smiling to herself at Thor’s actions, Darcy made to exit the room to find Steve, when Tony followed her closely out of the room.

“Hey kid, think we could have a word?” he asked, taking hold of her arm and basically dragging her down the hall to what looked like another conference room, which was empty with the lights off.

“Stark, what do you want?” Darcy demanded once the man had turned her loose and closed the door.

“I know, you have to chase after your Star-Spangled boy-toy, but hear me out first,” Tony said mockingly, taking in Darcy’s enraged facial expression. “C’mon Lewis, we both know you guys totally have something going on.”

“Yeah, it’s called being friends. Lord have mercy, Tony,” Darcy sighed tiredly. This wasn’t the first time Stark had commented on the relationship between Darcy and Steve. It was getting old. Mostly because she wanted it to be true. (Bad Darcy! Focus!)

“Mmmhmm, whatever you say, kid. But I wanted to know if you really think that this is only the first we’ve seen of this poison, because I trust your instincts, no matter how much I might make fun of you,” Tony said, looking her in the eye with the respect he afforded the other members of the team.

“Well, that’s what makes sense to me,” Darcy shrugged. “This could be a warm-up to a bigger target, like an Avenger, or someone close to them. I think someone wants your attention.”

“They’ve got it,” Tony bit out. “Okay, I’m gonna come up with a plan, you go find the good Captain. Be sure to comfort him very thoroughly.” Tony cackled gleefully as he exited the room quickly, narrowly avoiding a right hook from Darcy.

“Damn it, Stark! One day, I swear to God, you are gonna regret your words,” Darcy called after him as he disappeared around the corner. She thought for a moment, wondering if she would find Steve on the roof, and decided that was her best bet. 

There was no sign of Steve on the roof, or in the gym, or in the lounge area where the Avengers and those with high enough security clearance (hell yes, that included Darcy) were found to be hanging out most of the time. The room had plenty of comfy seating, including a particularly badass armchair right next to the tall bookshelf where Darcy tended to park herself when her work was done and she was just waiting for someone to need her nurse skills.

Sighing, Darcy took it as a sign that Steve wanted to be alone, and decided to just head home for the day. They could call her in if they needed her. It wasn’t until she was in the reserved parking area that she remembered her car was not available and she had ridden with Steve to the Tower. His motorcycle was not in the place he had left it this morning, so she figured he must be out driving, clearing his head. Darcy knew that Steve had dealt with guilt and grief over Coulson’s death, Jane had mentioned it to her one night over ice cream and wine. Lots of wine. It had been their epic reunion celebration, and Darcy shuddered, remembering the resulting headache. Totally worth it, though, as Jane had given her the scoop on the Avengers; the scientist knew a surprising amount about the heroes, no doubt due to Thor’s occasional inability to keep his mouth shut. Bless him, the giant man just loved to gab, worse than a teenage girl sometimes.

The ride in the cab was more peaceful than the bus would have been, even if it was more expensive. Totally worth it to not have creepy guys leering at her, or having to listen to screaming children, or be jostled about. When the cab stopped in front of her apartment, Darcy paid the driver, and strolled into the building, intent on a peaceful evening of catching up on her Netflix queue and polishing off the last of the wine she had on hand. But as she went to go up the stairs to her apartment, she was overwhelmed by the unmistakable feeling of being watched. Quickly turning her head this way and that, she surveyed her surroundings, looking for any sign that someone was following her. When her search proved fruitless, she shook herself, and proceeded to continue up the stairs to her apartment. She eyed Steve’s door, wondering if he was home, really wishing she had paid attention to the parking area in front of the building to see if his motorcycle was present. As she walked past his door, there was no sound behind it, so she figured maybe he was still out. 

Letting herself into her apartment, Darcy was immediately attacked by Bear’s ferocious attempts to lick her face.

“Bear. get down,” Darcy laughed as she pushed the dog off of her and he sat obediently in the doorway to the bedroom, waiting to be hooked to his harness and leash to go outside. The dog whined excitedly, going outside and walking the three blocks to the dog park was his favorite time of day. Darcy finished changing her clothes into a soft t-shirt and jeans, then gathered her keys and cell phone as she hooked the leash and harness onto her 80-pound dog, who was quivering with excitement.

“Okay, let’s go for your walk, buddy,” Darcy said as she and Bear began to make their way toward the front door. Just as Darcy made to grab the doorknob, Bear’s posture immediately stiffened, hackles raised, and began to growl viciously at the door. That was clue enough for Darcy, who knew that her dog was fiercely protective and only growled when he needed to, that something was amiss. Stretching to look through the peephole into the hallway, Darcy was able to see no one immediately outside of her door, only a man who appeared to be talking on a cell phone, in a worn black jacket and ball cap at the end of the hall looking out the window and down onto the street.

“It’s just some guy out there, Bear, c’mon. We’ll be fine,” Darcy said as she moved away from the peephole, and tried once more to reach for the door. The dog once again began growling and even stepped in front of the door to block Darcy from opening it. Sighing, Darcy looked once more out the peephole, only to find a pair of shocking blue eyes staring angrily back at her from under the same ball cap on the man in the hallway. 

Letting out a shriek, Darcy moved back from the door, and flew to her purse where it sat on the counter, and fished out her taser.

“I have a weapon, buddy, and I ain’t afraid to use it,” Darcy called through the door, while locking all three of the deadbolts and drawing the chain. She whipped her phone out of her pocket and dialed Steve’s number. ‘Please Lord, let him be home’ Darcy thought to herself as the phone rang twice before she heard him answer.

“Hey Darce, I know I shouldn’t have probably run out of the meeting, but -” Steve began before Darcy cut him off.

“Steve, are you home? As in next door to me? Answer me right now, please,” she asked, not even trying to keep the panic out of her voice.

“Yes. What’s wrong?”

His voice was calm and focused, and she could hear his bounding footsteps both through the phone and the wall. 

“I seem to have a creepy visitor, and I’m kind of freaking the hell out!” she said, her voice rising in pitch as she spoke.

“Stay inside, lock the door. I’m coming out there now,” Steve directed before ending the call.

She heard more footsteps scurrying away from her door as she heard Steve open his front door. Expecting to hear Steve’s angry voice, or at the very least his heavy footfalls as he chased creepy guy away, she was shocked to hear silence.

“Darcy?” Steve asked quietly through the door as he knocked gently. “Open the door, please.”

She opened the door, barely remembering to grab onto Bear’s leash as he made a last-second attempt to lunge outside, clearly intent on tearing creepy guy’s face off.

Steve stepped inside and closed the door behind him, looking grim. “I didn’t get a good look at him, he ran right as I opened my door. Must’ve heard me coming - ooof!” 

Steve didn’t get a chance to finish his thought before Darcy launched herself at him, wrapping her arms around his waist, now allowing the fear to take hold. 

“Holy shit, Steve! Dude was way creepy and just stared. Like, what if he’s some kind of serial killer, and I fit his profile? Oh my gosh, this is gonna be just like that episode of Criminal Minds!” Darcy ranted, increasingly panicked with each word. Steve froze, hands hovering awkwardly over the woman’s back, until they landed safely wrapped around her shoulders.

“Darcy, you’re okay. I don’t know who he was or what he wanted, but he left and you’re safe now,” Steve said reassuringly. “C’mon, I’ll take Bear outside, I’m sure he needs to go, then I’ll be back and taking you to Stark Tower.”

“Oh hell no! One: I’m not staying here by myself while you take the guard dog outside, and two: I’m not running from my home. I won’t be intimidated like that,” Darcy stated firmly as she pulled back, fire apparent in her eyes.

Steve just raised a skeptical eyebrow, as though to say ‘Then why are you latched onto me like a barnacle right now?’

Darcy huffed and stepped out of the circle of Steve’s arms, saying somewhat sheepishly “Sorry I freaked out on you again. But I’m good, promise, just had to get it out of my system. We will take Bear outside, and then come back and figure out what to do. I just really want to sleep in my own apartment, in my own bed right now.”

Steve nodded, smiling slightly, and reached for Bear’s leash and made for the door.

“Well, let’s get to it, then.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I promise we are gonna get more into the Coulson stuff, but just know that I'm kind of playing around with certain elements of canon involving Agents of SHIELD, CA:TWS, and T:TDW. Piecing together my own little world with these amazing characters. And any guess as to who the 'creepy guy' is? We'll be getting lots more of him too :) Thanks for reading!


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